A catheter includes a balloon and a shaft having a coaxial portion including an outer tubular member having a bore, a transition neck, an access fitting adjacent the proximate end of the catheter shaft for directing a guidewire into the catheter shaft, an inflation port, a guidewire tubular member disposed coaxially in the outer tubular member, the outer tubular member and guidewire tubular member defining a first, annular inflation/deflation lumen fluid communication with the inflation port, at least one second inflation/deflation lumen separate from and non-coaxial with the guidewire tubular member and having a cross-sectional area less than the cross-sectional area of the first inflation/deflation lumen and opening at a proximate end into the first inflation/deflation lumen and at the distal end of the transition neck.

A catheter includes a balloon and a shaft having a coaxial portion including an outer tubular member having a bore, a transition neck, an access fitting adjacent the proximate end of the catheter shaft for directing a guidewire into the catheter shaft, an inflation port, a guidewire tubular member disposed coaxially in the outer tubular member, the outer tubular member and guidewire tubular member defining a first, annular inflation/deflation lumen fluid communication with the inflation port, at least one second inflation/deflation lumen separate from and non-coaxial with the guidewire tubular member and having a cross-sectional area less than the cross-sectional area of the first inflation/deflation lumen and opening at a proximate end into the first inflation/deflation lumen and at the distal end of the transition neck.

An assembly for manufacturing a balloon envelope includes a table component and a sealing component. The table component may include a first platform, a second platform, a third platform, and a lateral opening between the first and second platforms. The first and second platforms can receive a first sheet of material that forms a first gore of the balloon envelope and a second sheet of material that forms a second gore of the balloon envelope. At least a portion of the first platform may move relative to the third platform so as to allow for the tendon and the portion of the second sheet attached to the tendon to move toward the third platform. The sealing component may be configured to bond the first sheet to the second sheet in order to join the first and the second gores of the balloon envelope.

The technology relates to a heat sealing system (400). For instance, the heat sealing system may include a sealer assembly (800) including a pair of heat sealing bars (830, 840) configured to generate heat seals. The heat sealing system may also include a positioning (900) assembly including a platform (910) and a motor (952). The sealer assembly may be mounted to the positioning assembly, and the motor may be configured to move the sealer assembly towards and away from an edge of a table (1600).

The current inventive technology described methods and apparatus for the production of a helium-free balloon having customizable reflective features.

Aspects of the disclosure provide a fill port apparatus for filling high altitude balloons, such as those used in communications networks, with lighter than air lift gasses. For instance, the fill port apparatus includes a tubular body portion having a passageway extending between a first end and a second end of the tubular body portion. The fill port apparatus also includes an attachment structure arranged at the first end of the tubular body portion. This structure is configured to attach to a top plate of a balloon envelope. The fill port apparatus also includes a plurality of energy directing structures arranged on an interior surface of the tubular body portion. These energy directing structures extend into the passageway from the interior surface and are each configured to contact at least one other of the plurality of energy directing structures when the tubular body portion is welded to itself.

Aspects of the disclosure relate to techniques for manufacturing a balloon envelope. In one example, a first sheet of material for a first gore of the balloon envelope is provided. Lap seal material is arranged at least partially on the first sheet of material. A first heat seal is created between the lap seal material and the first sheet of material. A second sheet of material for a second gore of the balloon envelope is arranged over the first heat seal. A second heat seal is created between the lap seal material and the second sheet of material such that the lap seal material is configured to provide additional structural support to the balloon envelope.

The current inventive technology described methods and apparatus for the production of a helium-free balloon having customizable reflective features.

The invention relates to a method for the production of a bladder accumulator (10) which separates two media chambers (16, 18) from one another in a storage housing (12) by means of a bladder body (14), comprising at least the following production steps:extruding a plastic tube over the bladder body (14);shaping the plastic tube with the integrated bladder body (14) in a molding tool that corresponds to a predeterminable plastic core container (20), andwinding at least one plastic fiber from the outside on the plastic core container (20) for the purpose of creating the storage housing (12).

Aspects of the disclosure relate to systems and techniques for inspecting seals for high altitude balloons. In one example, a system may include a reflective surface, a translucent material on the reflective surface, and a movable light source configured to move along the reflective surface and provide light to the reflective surface. The light is provided such that it is reflected from the reflective surface and through the translucent material in order to backlight a balloon envelope seal for inspection. A method for inspecting a balloon envelope seal may include placing balloon envelope material on a table, forming a seal between portions of the material, moving a light over the seal, shining light onto a reflective portion of the table below the seal to backlight the seal, and inspecting the seal using the backlighting of the seal.